Los Angeles is in the midst of a big debate over whether to impose mandatory water restrictions to help the city cope with a record-dry year and dwindling snowpack in the mountain ranges that feed the city's water supply. Meanwhile, Atlanta is still in a water crisis due to lingering drought in the South. Even though many people expect their municipal water supplies to last forever, these instances are a signal that Americans generally pay too little attention to the nation's water infrastructure -- and have grown to think of water as something cheap to be consumed in unlimited quantities. These shortages may help change that perception.